Cryptocurrency rewards offered for tips on the whereabouts of Jho Low, the fugitive financier wanted in the 1MDB scandal

Their website, WhereIsJho.xyz, offers cryptocurrency rewards for credible tips on Low's whereabouts – or any new information about the billions that were plundered

A pair of British men are offering cryptocurrency rewards for credible tips on the whereabouts of a Malaysian financier who vanished seven years ago as part of a multibillion-dollar corruption case.

The financier, known as Jho Low, was a key figure in the case of 1MDB, a government investment fund that was looted over the course of a decade.

After a six-year trial, a Malaysian court found former prime minister Najib Razak guilty of corruption and other offenses related to 1MDB in August 2022.

Najib was sentenced to 12 years in prison, but the sentence was later reduced on appeal.

However, the case continues to generate interest as new details emerge and those involved try to piece together the events that led to the plunder of billions of dollars from the fund.

To encourage more people to come forward with information, British menial worker Ben Wright and property developer Matt Hope have created a website called WhereIsJho.xyz and are offering an cryptocurrency bounty for any credible tips on Low’s location – or any new information about the billions that were plundered from 1MDB.

“Their website, WhereIsJho.xyz, offers cryptocurrency rewards for credible tips on Low’s whereabouts – or any new information about the billions that were plundered from Malaysia’s former state investment fund.

“The bounty isn’t just for Jho Low’s location,” Hope told This Week in Asia. “We’re looking for anything – from where the money went to unreleased documents, photos, or phone recordings. There are still huge gaps in the 1MDB story.”

To incentivise whistle-blowers, the pair are using $JHOLOW, a newly created memecoin adopted as a reward mechanism. While many memecoins are seen as internet jokes at best or scams at worst, Wright and Hope are treating $JHOLOW as a serious tool for uncovering the truth.

“What if a memecoin actually had a purpose?” Hope asked. “We’re not telling people to invest their savings. It’s more like a game, a kind of maverick spectator sport with real-world stakes.”

Multibillion-dollar scandal

The 1MDB scandal exploded onto the world stage as one of the largest kleptocracy cases in history. What was supposed to be a government initiative to drive Malaysia’s economic development became a slush fund for corruption and money laundering.

From the time of its 2009 launch until 2015, 1MDB was largely focused on developing real estate projects, investing in renewable energy sources and promoting small- and medium-sized enterprises.

After former premier Najib Razak took over the role of chairman of 1MDB in 2015, the fund’s mandate shifted. Through a series of complex financial maneuvers, 1MDB began investing in a series of ventures with a private investment firm.

Over the course of several years, billions of dollars were allegedly misappropriated from 1MDB. A U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation in 2016 found that the stolen funds were used to buy a yacht, a private jet, a Hollywood film and several Impressionist paintings, among other assets.

A British judge later ruled that the yacht, named the Via della Stella, belonged to Low and must be returned to Malaysia.

In 2022, a Malaysian court sentenced former premier Najib to 12 years in prison after finding him guilty of corruption and other offenses linked to 1MDB.

A British menial worker and a property developer have teamed up to create a website and are offering cryptocurrency rewards for any credible tips on the whereabouts of a Malaysian financier who vanished seven years ago as part of a multibillion-dollar corruption case.

The financier, known as Jho Low, was a key figure in the case of 1MDB, a government investment fund that was looted over the course of a decade.

After a six-year trial, a Malaysian court found former prime minister Najib Razak guilty of corruption and other offenses related to 1MDB in August 2022.

Najib was sentenced to 12 years in prison, but the sentence was later reduced on appeal.

However, the case continues to generate interest as new details emerge and those involved try to piece together the events that led to the plunder of billions of dollars from the fund.

To encourage more people to come forward with information, British menial worker Ben Wright and property developer Matt Hope are offering an cryptocurrency bounty for any credible tips on Low’s location – or any new information about the billions that were plundered from 1MDB.

Their website, WhereIsJho.xyz, offers small amounts of $JHOLOW, a newly created memecoin adopted by the pair as a reward mechanism. While many memecoins are seen as internet jokes at best or scams at